My evening has been... Interesting! Suggestions on a rescue recipe??
Tonight I baked a hire chocolate mud cake. I got the recipe off another online cake decorating forum so I assumed it would be fine. I noted that the cooking instructions said to bake at 120c for 120 mins... That seems like a stupidly low temperature for a stupidly long time....but since I've never done a white choc mudcake before I thought I'd better stick to the method exactly.
So it was a 10 inch x 3 inch round...
Mixed the batter and all that, was glossy and fabulous looking...
Poured it in the prepared pan and let it go. I checked the progress about half an hour in... And through the oven glass I could see a very handsome looking cake slowly rising and goldening... Super....
Shortly after that I smell smoke... I sprinted to the kitchen in dread... Opened the oven door and out billowed enough smoke to make my house look like a seedy pub. Frantically and carefully (if those to words can ever go together) I scraped all the burnt cake off the bottom of my oven. The cake had risen over the Pan and I forgot to put a precautionary tray underneath aaahhhhh!
So hoping and praying that my cake didn't smell or taste like the burnt dregs it was baking with for that time, I carefully and gently closed the oven, holding my breath...
Fast forward to not two hours like the recipe said, but two hours and 45 minutes later (after turning the heat up 20 degrees) the cake was ready.
Staring at my cake I decided to name her titanic. She sunk like no cake ever sunk before, crack and all. Wanting to cry, I decided to have a shower instead and get the burned cake smell outta my hair.
Upon returning to the kitchen I turn my cake out of the pan to see that the bottom is moist and delightful... Taste test... Yummy yummy I'm going to eat the whole thing and drown my sorrows.
Anyways, here's where you fine ladies come in... My sons first birthday celebration is not tomorrow, but the next day. I need to bake a cake tomorrow morning so I can decorate it tomorrow evening ready for the party. I so wanted to do a white choc mud cake, but now I have no white choc left and I'm rural so I can't pop into the shops now.
What cake can I bake? I want to do a 10 inch round. Covered in fondant and topped with my iggle piggle cake topper, so it can't be a feathery light sponge. This will be my sons first birthday, and first ever taste of cake, so mud cake was prob way too much anyway. But just about everyone else there Are adults. (It's just family, no little pals, he's too young to remember haha)
Please help!! Recipe anyone?
I think I'm going to buy me a decent cake recipe book and maybe never use online recipes again... I've had problems in the past, many times. And whenever I use a recipe book it turns out perfect. Can you change my mind?
Thankyou ladies (and gentleman if your here to) :-)
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Penny on
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Well I did it. Just. The last cake turned out fine. But didn't rise enough, so, I stacked it on top of the sunken Victoria, and placed a jam jar lid in the middle down the bottom to help it keep its shape haha. Seeing as I'm the one cutting and serving this one, doesn't matter haha. One thing I've learned here, I need ALOT more practice. The cake looks cute but it has so many flaws, I wouldn't sell it! So, back to the drawing board, practice practice practice! I need to keep in sight why I do the cakes in the first place, I enjoy it, and I enjoy the smiles on my kids faces. For Now, that's enough for me :) posting up pics of the cake in a minute on the photos section. If you don't know the theme "in the night garden iggle piggle" google image search will shine some light lol thanks everyone!
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Permalink Reply by Katy Nott on
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Oh Penny - what a shame! It has to be your oven - your cake is rising too fast. Unless......did you use a 10" pan with an 8" quantity recipe? If so, that may have caused it to cook too quickly. Or, did you beat it for too long? 2 -3 mins is plenty. Too long and you incorporate too much air. I'm so sad for you that you are having these issues, it really does spoil the fun. I got a bit down myself yesterday when some decorations I was making didn't turn out at all well. That's when I throw tantrums lol!, so I sympathise.
If you can get this book by Mary Berry, do so. It's an oldish one, so may not be available, plus, I don't know what measurements you use - cups or grams? If you use grams, it will work for you. I have this book and I love it.
http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/310671903799?var=gv<yp=AllFixe...
I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you.
Oh and I had a baking mum too - learnt pretty much all I know from her plus years of experience!
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Permalink Reply by June Kowalczyk on
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I concur with Katy, Penny. Must be your stove. If temp isn't right, messes up everything. My 1st oven in our 1st house was a cheapie. Most of the time it worked well, but when it didn't....... oh man. The top element of the stove was supposed to shut off once it reached proper temp, but sometimes it didn't. Never knew when it would happen. I would smell smoke, and whatever I had baking would have started to burn. I had the repair fella in so many times.... said it was the wiring, whole stove needed to be re-wired. Ah.. that wasn't happening. So I got smart & would watch & wait, and once the top element shutoff, knew I was in the clear. So I really feel for you. Baking is supposed to be fun, to be enjoyed. Don't be dismayed. Hopefully you will be able to rectify the situation. Actually, Penny, if you find your oven temp IS fluctuating erratically, it could prove dangerous. Perhaps hubby would consider getting you a new one. We did. Hubby was afraid of a fire. Best of luck.... keep us posted. :o)
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Katy: I am using a new stand mixer, maybe I have it on too high a speed for too long! I usually have used a hand mixer and have to stand there for ages using it. I may have gone too far with the mixer. Felt so quick in comparison to my hand mixer though haha! Also, the first cake, I know the sinking was prob from having to have the oven door open too long to scrape out that burned bit on the bottom of the oven.... The second cake I'm not sure. Perhaps the cake tin WAS too big. The third one didn't rise much and that must be an oven thing As June sAid? Learning learning. Thanks for the book recommendation, I do use grams so its perfect!
Hope you managed to get your decorations just right :-) wow what a blessing to have a baking mum. I guess if I keep at it, my kids will have the "baking mum" haha
June: wow yes, our oven is only 4 years old, but, it's the cheapest one available as we couldn't afford anything more. I insisted on a fan forced oven and had a bit of an inner tangy when my hubby frowned at me and said no. But he would have gotten too of the range if he could, we just didn't have the $$. But it may be out actual home wiring. When we first moved in here we had sooo many power outs. When I turn on the microwave or even open the fridge sometimes, the television goes silent for a few seconds... Sooo weird! Or it could just be our cheap and Nasty oven haha. Will def check oven temps.
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AHhhh Penny
Could be your power supply. By that I mean, too much demand for electricity & not enough amps coming into your house. Our 1st house was 40 yrs old when we bought it. The electrical box had not been upated, so when I was running the clothes dryer, and I put on the oven...... Bam.... blown fuse, blackout. The electrical box couldn't handle all those appliances going at the same time. SOoooo even tho money was tight, ( I was a stay at home Mom & one income ) hubby new it was dangerous. We needed a expert electrician, with a special licence through our provincial government, trained to upgrade our electical box. After that, we never had any more problems. You may need to investigate this. :o )
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Thank you June I will definately have a look at this! I can't run my new microwave at the same time as my kettle.... Trips the safety and power goes out in half the house. I can however use my oven, Kettle, toaster, TV and washing machine all at the same time... So odd!
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Jees Louise - what a drama for you all! Penny - microwaves and kettles take A LOT of power, you defo have a power supply problem. Hubby and I got rid of our electric kettle when we realised how much power it used. We are retired and drink a lot of tea (of course we do, we're English haha), so it was going very regularly. We use gas now (still expensive but hey, what can you do?). I also have a gas oven - always have, always will.
Decorations didn't come out the way I wanted, so moving on to Plan B this morning - ho hum.
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Oh Katy, may plan B, be better than expected!!
Haha my grandparents drink tea constantly. I don't think I've seen my grandad drink anything else!
Yes I considered gas. But because of where we live we would literally have to use gas bottles, for everything, because gas cannot be connected like a bayonette or anything) in our town. Some people do use the gas bottles and the price keeps going up and up and up! Loose loose situation sadly.
Well the cake was a big hit. Tasted a bit average but hey what can you do. At least it had the "aww" factor ;-)
And with that; I'm off to have a big fat cuppa tea.
Have a lovely evening!
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lol Penny - enjoy your tea. Glad the cake was a hit.
Plan B going reasonably well so far..........
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Permalink Reply by faith brandstetter on
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When I was making the wedding cake from h*&$ I had one cake that fell, grrrr. I had tested it with a metal cake tester and I think that when I use it, sometimes it heats up to much and then it appears that the cake is done but in actuality the cake cooked on the tester. I started using tooth picks and now I KNOW my cakes are done and they aren't falling. don't know if this helps or not.
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